In section 1 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the preface from the Lord himself regarding this book of commandments, something struck me differently about the following verses:
2 For verily the voice of the Lord is unto all men, and there is none to escape; and there is no eye that shall not see, neither ear that shall not hear, neither heart that shall not be penetrated. [speaking of the 2nd coming when every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is the Christ]
4 And the voice of warning shall be unto all people, by the mouths of my disciples, whom I have chosen in these last days.
11 Wherefore the voice of the Lord is unto the ends of the earth, that all that will hear may hear:
12 Prepare ye, prepare ye for that which is to come, for the Lord is nigh;
13 And the anger of the Lord is kindled, and his sword is bathed in heaven, and it shall fall upon the inhabitants of the earth.
14 And the arm of the Lord shall be revealed; and the day cometh that they who will not hear the voice of the Lord, neither the voice of his servants, neither give heed to the words of the prophets and apostles, shall be cut off from among the people;
15 For they have strayed from mine ordinances, and have broken mine everlasting covenant;
16 They seek not the Lord to establish his righteousness, but every man walketh in his own way, and after the image of his own god, whose image is in the likeness of the world, and whose substance is that of an idol, which waxeth old and shall perish in Babylon, even Babylon the great, which shall fall.
34 And again, verily I say unto you, O inhabitants of the earth: I the Lord am willing to make these things known unto all flesh;
35 For I am no respecter of persons, and will that all men shall know that the day speedily cometh; the hour is not yet, but is nigh at hand, when peace shall be taken from the earth, and the devil shall have power over his own dominion.
36 And also the Lord shall have power over his saints, and shall reign in their midst, and shall come down in judgment upon Idumea, or the world.
38 ...whether by mine own voice or by the voice of my servants, it is the same.
The Lord can only have power over his saints when they are willing to hear His voice.
The #HearHim campaign that begun in the beginning of 2020 is, as I came to realize just this week, more than just a campaign. You can view the video at the top of my blog. The year 2020 marked 200 years since Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ appeared to Joseph Smith to usher in the last dispensation of the fullness of times. The LAST time that the gospel would be poured out upon the earth before the 2nd coming of the Savior. The promised restoration of the true and full gospel of Jesus Christ.
Even in President Nelson's talk in the April 2019 conference, he tells us plainly:
“I plead with you who have distanced yourselves from the Church and with you who have not yet really sought to know that the Savior’s Church has been restored. Do the spiritual work to find out for yourselves, and please do it now. Time is running out.” —President Russell M. Nelson
The plea for us to hear Him is a warning to prepare for that which is to come. We need to be able to recognize the voice of the Lord more readily; to hear that which is unspoken during conference talks, scripture study and lessons that only the spirit can enlighten our minds to.
In Matthew Chp 13, his disciples ask Jesus why he spoke in parables, His answer?
11 Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given.
12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath.
13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Revelation 2
17 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches...
It is those who strive to hear that spirit that will receive more abundantly. The Lord time and time again has told us if we but seek we will receive, if we knock it will be opened unto us and He is willing to reveal ALL His mysteries if we but ask and are faithful enough.
When President Nelson said what he said to us in April 2019, do you know how many social media posts I saw regarding that profound statement? One. Nothing of the most IMPORTANT thing he said. Time is running out. How much more succinct can you be? You don't need the spirit to get that one and yet did anyone hear it?
There is also something else that has been bothering me. I see so many posts regarding the love that Jesus Christ has for us and you don't have to be perfect for God to love you and yet I have seen not one post regarding the love we should have for Him.
15 ¶ If ye love me, keep my commandments. (John 14)
There should be no question that the Lord loves us. He has said, "I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands...". He suffered immeasurable pain and was crucified for us so that we would not have to suffer for our own sins IF we repent and come unto Him. Why? Because He loves us and His Father who loves us.
16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
Does that sound like one whose love is variable?
If we truly loved Him, each one of us would be striving to loyally and faithfully follow Him. We would keep our feet firmly planted and not be swayed. Our eyes would see and our ears would hear. We would have wisdom and discernment to see through the world's bull. We would recognize Satan's influence and deny Him. We would have love one to another because He first loved us.
Yet, too many of us walk away even after experiencing such wonderful marvelous things.
66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
67 Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? (John 6)
If you're on your way out, turn around before it's too late. Love Him. Hear Him. Follow Him. Don't leave the One who would never leave you.
We are in the fourth quarter and the clock is ticking down.
